


Feels Like Static Electricity

by ImWithEnjolras



Category: Les Misérables - All Media Types
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-04
Updated: 2014-10-04
Packaged: 2018-02-19 21:52:45
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,386
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2404205
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ImWithEnjolras/pseuds/ImWithEnjolras
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Wait!" Éponine waved her hands wildly to stop him. "Wait, before you do that thing where you deflect because you think what you said you doesn't matter. Stop that. Shut up."</p>
            </blockquote>





	Feels Like Static Electricity

**Author's Note:**

> This took me insanely long to post on here. Sorry! But, it's been up on and tumblr and FFN for a while, so if you want to get to my fics before they're on AO3, pop over to my tumblr (stillwritinghallelujah) or my FFN (FirstxLove).

When Éponine first met Enjolras, she had her hands down her pants.

 

Well, it wouldn't be so hard to believe...if you can get past the fact that Enjolras was staring wide-eyed at her through her bedroom mirror.

 

-

 

It had been a long day for Éponine. It didn't help that her pervy boss decided to be extra handsy today. It also didn't help that rent was due. Maybe the fact that it was over 35 degrees outside and her air conditioning decided to go on the fritz was pretty much frying her nerve endings.

 

Long day indeed.

 

So no one - absolutely no one - could have begrudged her for wanting to have a good time with her hand. She was single - frustratingly single. And horny - ridiculously, frustratingly, absolutely horny. So, yeah. She and her hand were going to have a good time and no one could judge her.

 

She was down to her knickers and bra. She was - oh boy - right at the point of no return in her bed. It was just a little more...

 

...till he happened.

 

"Uh, excuse me."

 

She barely heard him over her heavy breathing and thoughts of the cute guy from next door. And she thought it was just a figment of her imagination. But there was a sudden tap and an awkward cough, so it wasn't all in her head.

 

"Pardon me, miss."

 

Éponine's eyes snapped open and her head jolted to the right. There he was - in her _mirror_. If she weren't so shocked, she could have looked past his red face and wide-eyed stare and noticed just how good looking the man in the mirror was.

 

"Jesus! Fuck-" She had an audience. She immediately pulled her hand from her underwear. "Shit!" She scrambled to grab her blankets, but even in her embarrassment she mumbled angrily. "Fuck, I was so close!"

 

When Éponine finally got herself composed, she didn't even have the mind to actually be angry. She was just...the situation was ridiculous now.

 

"Hi." He waved awkwardly. He had no shirt on.

 

Good God, he had no shirt on.

 

"Yeah. Hi." They stared at each other for a few silent and painfully awkward moments.

 

Enjolras gulped audibly, gaze fixated on the pretty brunette in her knickers on the other side of the glass - glass because his mirror wasn't a mirror any more, it seemed. He had no idea what to make of this situation. He had just come home after grabbing a beer with some co-workers. He was about to shirk off his jeans when movement in his peripheral vision forced him to look into his mirror. And that's how he found her - half-naked and just about to fall into euphoria with a hand down her knickers. He felt bad for interrupting her, but he knew - even with his own libido groaning at his chivalry - that he was not supposed to be watching this.

 

And now here they were.

 

"Name's Vincent Enjolras."

 

"Éponine. Éponine Thenardier."

 

It was quiet again. Three minutes ticked by and in those three minutes, Éponine committed to memory every physical trait that she could see of Vincent Enjolras.

 

He was blond and blue-eyed. His hair was wavy and in disarray. The sight of his lean, naked torso had Éponine squirming uncomfortably but she continued to stare at him, unashamed.

 

Oh God, a six pack.

 

Oh - and his pants were unbuttoned and rode low on his hips.

 

Maybe he wouldn't mind if she just finished herself off before continuing their...rendezvous.

 

"You know, it usually takes a couple dates for a guy to get this far with me."

 

A beat.

 

And then they both burst out laughing.

 

"Sorry for interrupting." He grinned, sheepishly. He rubbed the back of his neck with a hand.

 

"S'all right." Her blanket slipped past one shoulder, but she didn't readjust. Enjolras' eyes darted to her shoulder, before he forcibly tore his gaze away. Éponine smirked to herself, not missing his squirming. "So, Vincent Enjolras - how'd you get in there?"

 

"I think I could ask you the same question." With the blanket still wrapped around her, Éponine leaned forward and poked her mirror. She was met with a solid surface.

 

"Fascinating." Enjolras blinked, trying to ignore the fact that he was monstrously turned on by watching her wonder and think. He groaned; if Courfeyrac were here - which he was thankful he wasn't because this girl was beautiful and Courf would have just went raging frat boy everywhere...wait where was this train of thought going? Ah, if Courfeyrac were here he would have slapped Enjolras upside the head for getting turned on by something so non-physical. _Here is one of the most beautiful women you've ever had in your presence_ \- he'd say - _and you're turned on by her thought process! Unbelievable!_

 

"What is this thing?"

 

"Well, I'm looking at an old mirror that my mother bought from an antique shop." It was an old thing, but the glass was pristine and it wasn't as gaudy as he thought it would be.

 

"What's it look like on your end?" Éponine stared at the man intensely, mind whirling a mile a minute.

 

"Uh," How do you describe mirrors? "It's floor length...and it has a thick frame..."

 

Oh my God. So was hers.

 

"Is the frame black and has vines and shit all engraved in it?" Enjolras looked at her in surprise.

 

"Yeah. And the left hand corner of the frame's-"

 

"Chipped! Like someone bit it?"

 

All Enjolras could do was nod.

 

"What is this thing?" Éponine couldn't help but poke the glass again.

 

"I think we've stumbled on an actual looking glass, Éponine." He leaned towards the mirror, eyes looking carefully at the engravings, but there was nothing really discernible.

 

"Like in fairytales or whatever?" Enjolras noticed her eyes were practically sparkling. "That's so cool. Beats that smartphone facetime shit."

 

"Wait, smartphone?" Enjolras' eyebrows furrowed in thought. But smartphones had...

 

"Yeah, a smartphone. You know, like an iPhone?" Éponine leaned over to grab her phone from the nightstand and waved it in his face. "Don't tell me you're a hermit or one of those Luddite people."

 

"What? No. No, I mean - it's just...smartphone is an ancient term. No one uses that now."

 

Éponine stared at Enjolras for a good hard minute, trying to figure out if the guy was fucking with her or just plain insane. But Enjolras looked earnest and Éponine deduced that the guy wasn't lying to her. And he seemed perfectly lucid so...

 

"What do you mean 'smartphone' is an ancient term?" Éponine spoke slowly, not sure where their conversation was going to go.

 

"Well, I don't know where you're from, but virtually nobody even uses a smartphone here anymore, so the word is kinda old...even in the countryside."

 

"Then what do you use?"

 

"To communicate? Holos." Enjolras lifted his wrist and Éponine's gaze landed on the platinum watch. "Just a second, where are you from?"

 

"I think the real question here, Vincent..." Éponine stared at his surroundings in wonder. She was only just seeing things that she was ignoring in favour of the half-naked man in front of her. "The question is not where are you from, but _when_ are you from."

 

-

 

On her side of the mirror, it is the year 2014. There is civil unrest all over the globe and global unrest in general. She works in the biological conservation wing at the university, contracted by several large oil companies to survey and aid in the restoration of the oilsands. Her boss is handsy and a pervert, but everyone loves him so what could she do. People drive cars or take the bus to get places. Desktops, laptops, and tablets are the top range of electronics. Game consoles are rather bulky and the bigger the TV screen you had, the better off you were. Oh, and people used smartphones. Google Glass is only just becoming a thing.

 

On his side of the mirror, it is apparently 2257. Things have changed. No one uses cars and public transportation is no longer busses or high speed trains. We evolved from traditional transportation back in 2082, he says. He's a lawyer at a good firm with a good boss - she's a godsend, he says. No one uses 'old tech' anymore and those only exist in museums and in collections of hobbyists. Instead, everything is data and holograms. All technology is conveniently at your fingertips - or wrists, to be accurate. Holograms feature full colour range and can be as large or as small as you wish. All of this, is available for everyone, regardless of socioeconomic conditions - depriving anyone of these is simply barbaric. Holos are the main form of communication now. Oh, and Google Glass didn't work out.

 

-

 

Éponine had shrugged on a loose shirt and placed herself right at the foot of her mirror. "Our mirrors defy all the laws of science."

 

She had inspected every surface of the mirror, ooh-ing and aah-ing and trying to find some sort of explanation. Enjolras, on the other hand, was content to just watch her tinker about.

 

"This is so Doctor Who." At this, she looked back at him with a grin. "Though I guess you might not know what that is now."

 

"I love Doctor Who. But, you're right, most people now have no idea what that is. I just like twenty-first century stuff." Éponine plopped herself back in front of the mirror, a soft look on her face.

 

"What is it like there?"

 

"It's a bit better here than back where you are I guess." He leaned back, crossing his legs. "Societal power structure has changed."

 

"How so?" Enjolras took a moment to remember his high school studies on the 21st century and did a quick mental comparison.

 

"95% of world leaders are women and 80% of those women are women of colour."

 

"No. Way." Éponine nearly pressed her nose against the mirror, eyes wide with wonder.

 

"Mmhm." Enjolras scratched his elbow. "The president of the United States is a descendent of Malcolm X."

 

"Wow!" She was breathless; this was amazing. "Crime rates?"

 

"Not bad, but not good either. It's mostly net-crime now though. There are violent crimes, but criminals changed with the new tech and the new police structure."

 

"Interesting." Éponine was quiet for a while, but the smile on her face let Enjolras know she was just absorbing everything he was telling her. "How about global biodiversity? Did we mess it up? How badly did we mess it up? Oh my God, did you guys make a Jurassic Park Island? Please tell me you guys didn't make a Jurassic Park Island."

 

"Global biodiversity has increased. I heard on the news this morning that biodiversity in the Canadian Boreal Forests have increased by 30%. But in terms of how it was back where you are, all ecosystems are thriving." Éponine's head was spinning at the mere idea. How did humanity bounce back so well? "It got pretty bad from 2090 to 2100 though, but somehow we pulled through. And, no, we didn't make Jurassic Park because: one, that is just a really bad idea and two, no one is crazy enough to go through with that."

 

"This is crazy!" Éponine fell backwards and showed no sign of getting up. "I can't even wrap my mind around any of this!"

 

"Neither can I. I wonder..." Enjolras ran a slender finger down the glass. "Since we can only speak and see through these mirrors...are we communicating through a rift in time?"

 

Éponine rolled over to face him almost immediately. "That is so insanely cool!" Her grin was wide, but her tone was honest. "I'm glad that it was you on the other side."

 

"Me too, Éponine. Me too."

 

-

 

It had been roughly two months since Éponine met Enjolras, and the pair spoke to one another everyday after work. Coincidentally, the mirrors lined up daytime hours even though they were conversing over two centuries apart.

 

"How's work?" Enjolras was sitting cross-legged in front of his mirror, a bowl of cereal in one hand.

 

"Okay. It's the usual." Éponine popped an orange slice in her mouth. "Humanity and big corporations doing their best to end the world for money."

 

If Éponine had to be honest, over the span of two months Enjolras had become one of her closest friends. She told him everything from how her day went to the dark secrets that she kept hidden away from even her family.

 

"How's your boss? Still grabby?"

 

"Nah. Showed him a picture of you and said you were my boyfriend and that if he decided to get friendly again I'd let you loose on him." Enjolras nearly choked and ended up swallowing hardly chewed cereal roughly. Éponine laughed at his reaction. "Hey! You don't have to react so negatively!"

 

"What!" Enjolras nearly dropped the bowl. He immediately tried to explain his reaction, but his voice faded out by the end of his sentence in embarrassment. "No! I mean - I - no, I mean - I'd do it if you asked...regardless if...if we were dating...or not."

 

"Hey, no need to get all worried about it. I just needed to get him off my back." Éponine stayed quiet for a moment. "But thanks. And...I know you would."

 

_Hey, Enjolras. I might be in love with you._

 

Enjolras turned red almost instantaneously - it was a talent he had discovered when he first met Éponine. And it seemed to be a talent that only ever happened around Éponine.

 

"Did I..." _Did I ever tell you that I think I'm falling in love with you?_ "Did I ever tell you about my friend Feuilly?"

 

"Fee...what?" Éponine looked at him incredulously. Whoever that was, they couldn't actually have that name.

 

"Feuilly - it's French." Enjolras pointed an accusing finger at her. "Hey! I know that look. It's your 'Enjolras is totally fucking with me' look! Feuilly is real and Feuilly is my friend!"

 

"Oh come on, Vince. Feuilly is such a strange name. This guy has got to be imaginary!"

 

"No! No! Don't you act like your name isn't weird and French too. Both our names are weird and French!"

 

"Quit being a kid, Enjolras!" Both were trying to keep from bursting out in laughter.

 

"Am not! You're making fun of my friend!"

 

"Am not!"

 

"Meanie!"

 

-

 

Four months. They'd been technical pen-pals - mirror-pals? - for four months.

 

Éponine had become the highlight of Enjolras' day. He'd rush home, foregoing his usual meeting with his friends or grabbing a beer with coworkers, just to see Éponine.

 

"Hey," Feuilly punched Enjolras' shoulder lightly. "Are you even paying attention?"

 

"Hm?" Enjolras slowly looked back at his friend. "Sorry, what was that?"

 

Feuilly's brows furrowed; he'd become increasingly concerned for his friend. "Okay, what's bothering you?"

 

"I - nothing. There's nothing bothering me." Feuilly sighed and opened his mouth to talk, but he was quickly flanked by Courfeyrac and Combeferre.

 

"I sense things are getting serious here." Courfeyrac grinned good-naturedly, but his eyes were worried.

 

"You've been pretty distracted at work, Enjolras." Enjolras' gaze darted to Combeferre. "And you left your door unlocked yesterday - that's pretty unlike you."

 

Feuilly nodded in agreement. They were all neighbours in their complex.

 

"I did?" Yesterday he listened to Éponine talk about her hopes and aspirations and he smiled at the thought.

 

"Yeah, and I heard you speaking to someone in your room before I locked the door. Is that the reason why you've been so out of it?"

 

At this, Enjolras' expression went from happy to blanch-faced worry. They would think he's going crazy if he said he was talking to a girl through his mirror. He'd be committed to an institution faster than he could blink.

 

"I..."

 

Courfeyrac had sat there uncharacteristically quiet. He was listening intently to his friend's impromptu intervention and had caught every one of Enjolras' expressions. Courfeyrac may be on a different page than Enjolras in most things, but he knew the chief better than people assumed.

 

"Who is she?"

 

Enjolras' head jolted towards Courfeyrac and his deer-in-the-headlights look would have been hilarious had the atmosphere been lighter. What felt like hours ticked by and Enjolras realised he was not going to get past Courfeyrac today.

 

"I think I love her."

 

-

 

When he returned home that evening, Éponine was already on the other side, waving and grinning. He walked towards the mirror, dropping his things haphazardly as he went. His gaze was fixated on her and he knew whatever the expression his face had was probably really, really dumb.

 

_"You need to tell her."_

When he still said nothing, Éponine's countenance grew worried. "Hey you okay?"

 

He sat down heavily in front of the mirror. "Yeah, yeah I'm good."

 

Éponine was not convinced. "I don't believe you."

 

"I know." He breathed out heavily and Éponine could sense that whatever Enjolras was going to say was important. "Hey Ep."

 

"Yeah?"

 

"I'm in love with you."

 

-

 

Éponine could hardly breathe - in fact she was actually holding her breath. That was absolutely the last thing she thought she'd be hearing from Enjolras' mouth. He loved her. He loved her!

 

If she wasn't so shocked, she'd be jumping and screaming for joy.

 

But while Éponine was having a party in her head, Enjolras was getting more and more discouraged with her silence. Maybe he shouldn't have said anything.

 

"You know what-"

 

"Wait!" Éponine waved her hands wildly to stop him. "Wait, before you do that thing where you deflect because you think what you said you doesn't matter. Stop that. Shut up."

 

She gulped audibly.

 

"I think I - no." She wiped her palms on her sweats. Éponine could hardly look at him, but she forced herself anyway. "I love you too."

 

-

 

"Did you tell her, Enj?"

 

"Please don't call me that." Éponine wasn't home yet, so Enjolras actually answered his holo for once. Lucky Courfeyrac. The holographic figure of his friend followed him around the living room, phasing through his furniture. "Yes."

 

Courfeyrac _vibrated_. "And?"

Enjolras was quiet, a small smile on his lips. He whispered: "She loves me too."

 

"YEEESSSSSSSS." Courfeyrac jumped up and down; had he actually been there, Enjolras was sure he would have destroyed everything in his path.

 

"Could you not."

 

"It's just - I'm so happy for you!" Courfeyrac laid a holographic hand on Enjolras' shoulder, not like he could feel that, but the sentiment was appreciated. "I've never seen you so..."

 

"Happy?" Enjolras interjected.

 

"Expressive."

 

"Shut up." Courfeyrac laughed.

 

"So when do I get to meet her?"

 

Enjolras dropped the glass he was holding and it shattered loudly and quietly all at once.

 

-

 

"You know what, Enjolras." At this, Enjolras looked up from the papers spread in front of him. Éponine was curled up in a blanket, staring out of what he assumed was her window. The light filtering in was dull and grey.

 

"What?"

 

"These are the kind of days I wish I were with you. Like actually, physically there. Sans mirror." Enjolras didn't say a word. This topic had come up a lot in their conversations. It had been over a year now since they'd first met - a year, four months, one week, and two days by Enjolras' count.

 

Enjolras would be lying if he said the thought never crossed his mind. Éponine, more or less, was always on his mind. His friends and coworkers started wondering when they were actually going to meet the girl that kept him up at night.

 

"I want to be with you too."

 

_I'd do anything - I'd give up everything - to have you by my side, Éponine._

 

He heard thunder rumble off in the distance.

 

 _I have nothing here, Enjolras. All I have is you and you're stuck behind a fucking mirror_.  

 

-

 

The mirrors had this weird muting feature when neither of them were in front of the glass.

 

So Enjolras slept through the storm raging on Éponine's side. He slept through the thunder and lightning, hail, and rain.

 

And he didn't see how a tornado ripped through Éponine's house.

 

-

 

 

When Enjolras woke the next morning, his mirror flickered between static and black. He leapt out of bed, breaths coming out laboured and frantic.

 

"Éponine?" He tapped the glass gently at first, but when no answer or image filtered through he started shaking the frame. "Éponine!"

 

He waited two minutes, then three, then five, but the mirror still flickered.

 

"Come on!" He nearly ripped the mirror off of the hook.

 

Then his worst nightmare came true.

 

The flickering stopped and for the first time in a year and a half, Enjolras met his own blue-eyed gaze in his mirror. Enjolras' heart fell to his feet and his knees buckled before he finally fell to his knees.

 

The girl he loved was gone. His world had fallen apart.

 

-

 

The next few weeks went by slowly and in a blur for Enjolras. He had forgotten what life was like before meeting Éponine. But now he was without her and it was cold and dark and dreary. There was no colour.

 

His friends watched helplessly as their chief fell deeper and deeper into depression. He was washed out - all his vibrant golds, reds, and blues were gone. Not even Courfeyrac had anything to say to console his heartbroken friend. He'd gone through break-ups before, but Enjolras' was a plight he had never encountered.

 

-

 

"Enj...I-"

 

Enjolras' head turned slowly towards Courfeyrac, Jehan, and Combeferre. His stare was blank and lifeless.

 

"Are...are you all right, Enjolras?" Jehan sat gingerly beside Enjolras on his couch. The window in front of them displayed heavy rain, even though it was actually sunny outside. When Grantaire saw the display Enjolras had been playing for the last few weeks, even he winced.

 

"Did you know that in 2014 her hometown was ravaged by one of the worst storms recorded in the country?" Enjolras laughed bitterly. "Hail, thunder and lightning, heavy rain and concluded by one of the most devastating tornados recorded that century. A symphony of destruction. Three-quarters of the city either disappeared or killed."

 

"What are you talking about?" Combeferre's worry increased tenfold - they weren't asking for the meteorological history of 2014.

 

"Tornados don't even happen in that part of the country," Enjolras whispered. Jehan and Combeferre glanced at each other, worry evident in their furrowed brows.

 

"Look, Enjolras...I know this break-up is taking it's toll on you, but-"

 

"Please, stop." Enjolras begged his friends. His gaze was turned to his lap while his hair prevented them from seeing his expression. "Just stop."

 

"But..."

 

"You guys didn't break up did you?" Courfeyrac finally spoke up, but Enjolras stayed still. "You lost her."

 

"I didn't even know." For the first time in weeks Enjolras showed emotion, but it was not the kind they had been hoping for. He buried his face in his hands, sobs racking his slim frame. "I didn't even know!"

 

-

 

Five weeks and two days.

 

Enjolras locked himself in his house and called in sick at work. They gave him as much time as he needed to grieve. Courfeyrac told them a loved one passed away. He then proceeded to barricade himself in his room. It had been the first time he sat in front of the mirror in five weeks.

 

Still all he saw was himself.

 

He got to his knees, as if to pray, and fell toward the mirror. He grasped the sides desperately, tears falling down his face and breath fogging up the surface.

 

"Please, Éponine." His forehead pressed against the cold glass. "Please, where are you? Please!"

 

His body shook with sobs. "Please come back to me. I need you." He slid down the mirror, hand pressed against it in search of hers. "I love you."

 

Silence.

 

But then...

 

"Enjolras?" His head jolted up; it must have been his imagination. "Vincent!"

 

"Éponine..." There she was, dishevelled, but alive nonetheless. "Éponine!"

 

Tears ran freely down his cheeks in happiness while a grin broke out across his lips.

 

"I can't believe this thing made it." He watched as she picked up the mirror to prop it against something. "Must be made of some alien substance." She crouched in front of him. "I'm sorry it took so long to find you. I just...I didn't even know where to start. I'm 50 km from where my house was."

 

"It's fine." Both were wiping tears off of their face. "It's fine - you're alive."

 

"I guess you did your research, huh?"

 

"I was so scared. I just wanted to see you." Her hair waved gently in the wind. "I wanted to make sure you were okay."

 

"I'm sorry."

 

"Don't apologize." They stayed quiet for a moment, observing each other intently. "I wish I could hold you." Éponine brought her hand up to the mirror, palm flat on the glass.

 

"Me too, I-" Éponine cut herself off, pulling her hand back from the glass. She stared quizzically between her hand and the mirror.

 

"What's wrong?" She glanced back up at him.

 

"I don't know. It's never done that before." She touched a few of her fingers together. "Feels like getting shocked with static electricity."

 

Wondering what she was talking about, Enjolras put his hand against the glass as Éponine leaned her weight forward.

 

"I don't kn-"

 

As soon as they both had their palms against the glass, Enjolras felt a sudden warmth against his palm. Then pressure, and then-

 

Éponine fell _through_ the mirror.

She was sprawled over his lap in an instant and all they could do was stare at each other.

 

A minute passed by.

 

Enjolras was the first to leap to action. He pulled her up and crashed his lips against hers. Éponine squeaked in surprise as he lay back, taking her with him. She closed her eyes, relishing in the feel of him finally around her. He threaded his fingers through her hair, hand pressed against the back of her head. She grasped his arms tightly, afraid this was a dream.

 

But the shivers down her spine and the heat of him against her were too real even for the most vivid of dreams.

 

When they finally pulled back for air, they were gasping. Enjolras' gaze on her was warm and adoring and full of awe. She pressed her forehead against his, noses brushing gently.

 

"Hi."

 

She giggled.

 

"Yeah. Hi."

 


End file.
